On Her Hands
by TamoraSky
Summary: Qi'ra didn't think much of the young Princess when she first noticed her.
1. Chapter 1

Aldera, Alderaan. 5 BBY.

The greeting to the planet's capital was warm and welcoming, nothing less than any of the members of Crimson Dawn had expected. The only thing that was out of place was the Queen was not present during the welcoming, they were later informed she would not be attending at all.

Qi'ra stared at the young girl who stood in her mother's place, she did not think much of the girl; she was only a child, maybe fifteen at the most.

The man she recognized as the Viceroy and the King Consort steps forward and extended his hand out to her. She took it and curtsied before him.

"Welcome." He greeted, as it was customary for the royal members to speak first.

"Viceroy Organa." Qi'ra responded as she straightens herself. "I appreciate you seeing us on such short notice."

"Think nothing of it. We were pleased to receive you."

"I am relieved to hear that." Qi'ras eyes wandered to the young girl who stood beside the Viceroy.

"Ah. May I introduce my daughter, Princess Leia of Alderaan."

"Of course, your highness." As Qi'ra is about to curtsy again, the young Princess stopped her.

"Please, no need for pleasantries. My father and I are pleased to receive you as you requested. Now I believe there was something you wished to discuss with us, lets begin shall we." Leia states, the Viceroy chuckles and places his hands on the young girl's shoulders.

"Please excuse my daughter. She is rather…passionate."

"A trait she gets from her father I presume."

"Her mother actually. Please come this way." Bail removed his hand from Leia's shoulder to direct the way. Qi'ra hesitantly moved, but is at ease when Bail moves with her at the same pace.

"I would like to allow you to settle however, due to some previous engagements I unfortunately have to set course for Courusant tonight."

"Of course, you are rather busy. I admit I know our request was rather…abrupt and intrusive."

"Abrupt yes, intrusive of course not. The House of Organa is always pleased to receive guests. Especially from Crimson Dawn, Dryden Vos was always most generous to my wi-The Queen."

"Of course, Alderaan was always one of Vos' favorite planets to be on."

"You mean his favorite planet to exploit his wealth on." The Princess speaks up, Qi'ra turns her head to look at the girl. She was beginning to think the princess was much sharper than she appeared to be. The Viceroy goes silent, not correcting the girl, but holding in a smile.

They enter the room, Qi'ra resists the urge to sit before the Viceroy, but is taken a back when the Viceroy waits to sit. He does not sit until the Princess sits. Qi'ra finally sits, in a chair further removed from the rest. The doors close, shutting out the men who accompanied Qi'ra.

"We will make sure your men are well taken care of." Bail reassured the woman, as he noticed her distress. "Can we get you anything? Perhaps some wine?"

"No, I appreciate the gesture."

"As the leader of Crimson Dawn, I understand this meeting to be one of negotiation. What is it you've come to propose?" Leia asks, wanting this meeting to be finished as fast as possible. Qi'ra looks from the Viceroy to the Princess, almost at a loss of words at the girl's brashness.

Qi'ra took a breath to re compose herself, she was not considering the Princess to be as intimidating as she seemed to be.

"As you know the Empire has severely limited which planets the crime syndicates can rule, we are only allowed access to the outer rim planets, where the empire rarely has a presence. As resistance groups grow on these planets we find we are being pushed out by these rebels. As many know, Alderaan is not the most sympathetic to the Empire."

"What is it that your proposing?" Leia asked.

"Protection, Princess. Crimson Dawn is offering Alderaan protection from the Empire."

"And what is it your wanting in return?"

"As we are being pushed out of these planets, Crimson Dawn is noticing a significant decrease in resources. Those that allow us to continue our exploration have no resources to yield and those who do, well…we are not the most welcome on those planets."

"So in exchange of your protection, you want our resources?"

"Yes, we want access to your water ways, the ability to mine in your mountains and in return you will have our protection." Qi'ra stares intently at the princess, as if to solidify her promise.

Leia stood from her chair, and made her way to the large window which overlooked the capital. She stayed silent for a while, pondering what the woman had said. She turned to face her father and the woman, Leia's palms lingered on the window sill.

"I've been instructed by my mother to do what is right for our people."

"We will help your people." Qi'ra adds.

"Of course." Leia stepped away from the window. "As you helped the Savarian people, cutting out their tongues when they tried to rebel."

"That was under Dryden Vos, not me."

"You both work for the same boss no? And what of the Twi'lek people of Ryloth?"

"What of them?"

"The exportation of slaves, particularly of females has increase since the rise of the Empire."

"That has nothing to do with us. The Empire is continuously exporting those slaves." Qi'ra defended, her teeth going on edge.

"And who is buying them? The Hutts? Crimson Dawn has been proven to purchase and support the slave trade. And what of the Alderaanian people, once you've raped Alderaan of her resources you will turn to exporting and exploiting our people." Leia takes a deep breath, staring intently at the woman. "Alderaan's answer is no. We will not accept your terms. Good day."

Leia pulled away from the room, leaving for the gardens. Qi'ra sat in silence, hoping for the Viceroy to speak up.

"I'm sorry things did not occur the way you would've liked them to. I shall see you out." Viceroy stood, as does Qi'ra. The two are silent as they walked back to the landing pad. Qi'ra faced the Viceroy as they reach her ship.

"Thank you for receiving me once again Viceroy."

"Of course. I hope you have a safe flight back."

"Thank you." Qi'ra looked over to the gardens, in the distant she saw the young Princess staring in their direction. "You have quite the future monarch."

"That we do. She may come off as brash, even cold…however she has other's in her mind always."

"I gathered." Qi'ra manages to tear her gaze off the young girl. She thanked the Viceroy once more before getting on her ship.

She smirked, thinking about the young Princess, knowing she would one day keep a young man on his toes.

…

It was four years later when Qi'ra heard the news. She sat in her office on the yacht when her page barged through the door and gave her the news. Alderaan was gone. The royal family was all presumed to be dead.

"Pity…she had so much potential." Qi'ra stated before waving her servant away. She felt pity for the people of Alderaan, however their demise was not on her hands.

 **Author's Note:**

 **I'll probably will do a follow up to this.**

 **I'll be posting a new chapter of "When it's all over soon."**


	2. Chapter 2

4 ABY, First Light, Savareen.

She had been dreading this, the meetings with the newly established Republic, as they so called themselves. They were rebels, that was what this so-called government was. The same people who fought against what Crimson Dawn stood for, the same people who sponsored scum like Enfys Nest. Therefore, they were scum, she knew why they were coming, they were going to ask Crimson Dawn to emancipate those who had been enslaved.

She was hoping she would be able to convince the representative to drop the charges and allow Crimson Dawn to remain separate and free to operate as usual.

She managed to look her best, her hair was curled and her bangs pinned to the side out of her face. She wore a blood-red lipstick, knowing the color made her more intimidating. She wore her favorite dress when negotiating with others, the long black dress made her seem taller, the sleeves were cut off at the shoulder, and the neck line dipped low to her sternum.

There was a knock at the door, knowing better than to enter without permission.

"Mistress Qi'ra" The droid called as the woman opened to the door to her officer. "The representatives of the republic are here."

"Right, make them at home while I prepare myself."

"Yes ma'am." The droid leaves, making its way for the lower floor. Qi'ra walks to the bar and pours herself a glass of whiskey.

She liked the Tervaki whisky the most, it was smoother than the Corellian whiskey and didn't give her a hangover. She downs it quickly, taking a moment to let the burn settle in before making her way to the lower floor.

As she exits from the lift, she noticed the representatives immediately. They seemed out of place from the usual type of people on the yacht. She smirked upon seeing who she presumed would be negotiating with her, he was a young boy, fairly attractive but had a farm boy feel to him.

She straightens her back, pushing her chest out a little as she strides over to them. The second person turns around and Qi'ra stops in her tracks.

It was the eyes, she would never forget those eyes. She was no longer a young girl, she was a young woman now. She was dressed rather plainly, in a pair of pants, boots, and a tan jacket covering a white cami; her head was covered by a scarf, presumably to protect her from the sun. This was going to be more complicated than expected.

Qi'ra slinks over to the pair, a slight smile appearing on her face.

"Welcome. You must be the representatives from the Alliance." Qi'ra states as she approaches the two. They look at her, the woman immediately squares back her shoulders and her smile disappears.

"Yes, This is Commander Luke Skywalker of Tatooine and I am-"

"Princess Leia of Alderaan, yes of course. I would remember your eyes anywhere." The older woman smiles, seeing that the young woman hadn't changed much over the years. "Please follow me."

The couple follow behind Qi'ra, walking to the lift. Qi'ra turns to the two upon reaching the lift.

"Please excuse my manners but as I remember it is custom for negotiating parties not to bring in guards." Qi'ra states, remembering her visit to Alderaan. Luke looks at Leia, hesitantly, not able to get a feeling for these people. "I'll see to it that you are well taken care of."

"Of course." Leia agrees, she looks to Luke to give him reassurance.

"Make yourself comfortable of course." Qi'ra says to Luke, before opening the lift doors, stepping through before Leia.

"I appreciate you taking time to see us." Leia says, breaking the silence in the lift. Qi'ra smirks as the lift doors open to her officer. The two women step through into the room.

"Of course. Your father was always generous to receive Crimson Dawn when we requested. I will always open the same generous spirit to his only daughter."

"Thank you. He would have been grateful." Leia stands in the middle of the room as Qi'ra makes herself a drink.

"Can I get you anything? I've got a fine Tevraki Whiskey."

"No, thank you. I believe my husband would never forgive me if I drank Tevraki Whiskey. He has a particular fondness for Coreillan Whiskey."

Qi'ra chuckles at the Princess' comment, sitting down on her sectional. She gestures for Leia to do the same, the younger woman sits far enough away from the older woman to be somewhat comfortable.

"Either your husband has burnt his taste buds off or he is from Corellia."

"He's from there." Leia remarks, slowly becoming uncomfortable with the small talk.

"Shall we skip the pleasantries? I recall them making you rather uneasy." Qi'ra takes sip of her drink. "What would the Alliance want from Crimson Dawn? Protection? An ally against the Empire?"

"No. Since the Battle of Naboo the Alliance has been gathering information on the crime syndicates in the galaxy and giving them options."

"What? Join the Alliance or scatter?"

"We've gathered sufficient evidence that confirms Crimson Dawn was involved with the slave trade off of Kashyyyk and Ryloth. All of the crime syndicates that collaborating with the Empire are to be pardoned, but those who hold slaves from the Empire are to be tried for Crimes against Humanity." Leia explains, now wishing she had accepted that drink. "We've gone to the Hutts and the Pykes."

"And what did they say?"

"The Hutts were hesitant, but eventually relinquished their slaves over. The Pykes have been taken into custody."

"Is that, right? Well the Hutts aren't a surprise. Since Jabba the Hutt was killed they have been unable to reorganize and operate the way they used to." Qi'ra smirks at the younger woman. "Tell me, I've heard different versions of the story. But how did the Hutt really die? I admit I was disappointed I always hoped I would be the one to kill him. But when I heard the Princess of Alderaan was the one who slayed him I was very impressed."

"Not much to talk about. He chained me up and so I strangled him with those same chains."

"Impressive. Because I am quite amused by your spirit I will drop the prices for Crimson Dawn's slaves for you to buy and we'll be on our way."

"I'm afraid that's not how it'll work. You either free the slaves in your custody or we'll take you into custody."

"I see and I'm afraid I won't be able to do so. Do you know how many credits Crimson Dawn will lose by setting free those slaves?"

"If you don't, you will be tried as a war criminal. For the mass murders and mutilations Crimson Dawn has committed over the years you will likely be put to death. Even I cannot change that." Leia warns, hoping this would change the woman's mind. Qi'ra stares at her, taking another sip of her whiskey.

"And what of you?"

"Pardon me?"

"How many lives are on your hands Princess? The men and women who have died in your name in the Alliance, 2,000 maybe 3,000. And what of Alderaan…. 2 billion people dead because your decision. Of course, this doesn't include the number of survivors who killed themselves after the destruction." Qi'ra states, staring intently into those familiar eyes. "How do you live with it Princess? 2 billion lives."

Leia stares at her defiantly, not allowing her guilt to make her shy away from the older woman's taunting. She of course knew Alderaan was on her hands, as were the rebels who died during the Civil War. She thought about them every day, they were the things that kept her up at night.

"I manage somehow." Leia answered. "I assume your answer is no."

"You'd be correct, unless the Alliance is willing to pay. 290,000 credits for the lot of them."

Leia sighs, she knew the Alliance didn't have that kind of money. Most of their funds had been places into rebuilding planets and communities which had been devastated by the war. Leia goes to rub the back of her neck, her fingers brushing along the necklace she had on. Her eyes widen at the realization, she unclasps it, taking it off her neck.

It was a present to her from the ambassador from Naboo after the battle, it was worth quite a lot, once having belonged to the former Queen Amidala. She tosses the necklace onto the table, Qi'ra stares at the item and then back to the Princess.

"Nabooian diamonds and sapphires. It's worth around 25,000 credits." Leia states, Qi'ra picks up the necklace and inspects it.

"I'll give you two Wookies and a Twi'lek girl for it."

"Two Wookies and three Twi'lek girls."

"Do you have any idea how much Twi'lek girls go for? Three Wookies and two Twi'lek girls."

"Fine." Leia concedes, in truth she didn't know how much Twi'lek girls were. She assumed they would be at a high rate, she knew that the Twi'lek women and girls were often selected for sexual slavery.

"Anything else you would like to contribute to this trade? I know a merchant who would pay substantially for your hair."

"My hair?" Leia questions.

"Indeed, usually he has to use Wookie hair but will pay a high price for human hair. Not that the women in Imperial City notice either way, but apparently human hair is better quality. I'll give you…two Wookies."

Leia nods, accepting the trade. Pondering what to pawn next, she didn't have much left.

"Now…how about your ship? Depending on what it is I'll give you upwards of 10 slaves." Qi'ra bargains. Leia's heart almost leaped out of her chest when she heard this, but she knew the Falcon was not hers to bid away.

"I cannot bargain with my ship."

"Now, don't tell me your getting possessive now." Qi'ra raises an eyebrow at the girl, she felt for her, she really did but in the long run Qi'ra knew she had to watch out for herself and if she was not paid for the slaves it could cause her serious trouble.

Leia looks to her hands, she hated that she was doing this but it had to be done. She slipped the rings off her fingers and placed them on the table. Qi'ra picks up her engagement ring first, inspecting it.

"Alderaanian diamonds, ½ carat. I demand for two Twi'lek girls." Leia states, she knew Han would kill her, she also knew he would get over it if it meant she was saving two lives.

"Alright. And what is this?" Qi'ra asks, picking up the second more plain ring.

"Corellian gold." Leia states, gazing at her wedding ring which now was being observed by Qi'ra.

"Corellian…not worth much….One Wookie." Qi'ra places the rings back on the table when the Princess nods. "What now Princess? You have 10 slaves, what are you going to do for the other 30? Surely you've run out of materials to bargain with and you cannot sell the clothes off of your back."

"The Chalcedony Waves. The necklace that belong to my mother, Queen Breha. I'll trade it for 2 slaves." It was killing her to get of jewelry that had emotional significance, but it had to be done. "And I have dresses. Two of which are Nabooian silk, One is Alderaanian, and the other is Kashyyykian."

"I'll give you 2 slaves for the necklace. I will give you six slaves for the dresses."

"I think eight for the dresses are a fair enough trade."

"Unless you're totally oblivious Kashyyykian garments are hardly in demand. Six is my only offer for the dresses."

"Fine, six. Four Twi'leks and Two Wookies."

"Of course." Qi'ra stands, her glass now empty. She goes and refills her glass, her back facing her guest "Are you sure I cannot get you something to drink? All this negotiating must be getting tiresome."

"Quite sure, Thank you." Leia reaffirms. Qi'ra pauses as she hears the lift running, the doors opening into her office. She is about to reprimand her servant but before she can speak the intruder speaks first.

"What the hell your Highness."

Qi'ra stops herself from choking on her drink, shocked at the intruder's comment to the Princess.

"I told you to stay on the ship." Leia stands from the sofa.

"Yeah, I was. Then I got a message from the kid you were in here alone. That was never part of the plan."

"I assure you. The princess is in good hands." Qi'ra acknowledges as she turns towards the rebels. Her smile drops when she sees the man, it was him, he looked older however his demeanor hadn't changed since they last met. "Han."

He takes his gaze off Leia to finally look at their host, his face loses all emotion, unsure how to process the presence of her.

"Qi'ra…" Han trails off, "Why are you here?"

"My ship, First Light. I could understand why you didn't recognize it. I made some major modifications since Vos' demise." Qi'ra saunters from the bar towards her former lover.

"You mean since you murdered him and left me on this planet."

"I couldn't go with you. We both knew that. I saved you that day."

"No, Enfys Nest saved Chewie and I that day. You would've left me to die in the sand." Han states. Leia places a hand on his forearm, trying to comfort him. Han looks her small hand, his expression softens as he stares at it, placing his over hers. Leia looks up from their hands back to Qi'ra, clearing her throat

"I believe we have negotiations to finish." Leia interjects.

"Of course. Han why don't you make yourself comfortable downstairs with Commander Skywalker while I finish with your Princess."

"Like hell I will. I ain't trusting you two around each other."

"Han…" Leia warns, not wanting to squander this opportunity.

"Fine. Take a seat, we'll finish up." Qi'ra moves to the sofa, sitting with her drink in her hand. Han moves ahead of Leia, taking the seat closer to Qi'ra, separating the two. "Now where were we? Right, the clothing."

Han examines the room, noticing the table in front of them and a few pieces of jewelry belonging to Leia resting on it.

"What are we bargaining for?" Han inquired, staring at Leia's engagement and wedding ring.

"The slaves." Leia responds.

"Kriff Leia, don't tell me your selling off your jewelry."

"They are all things that can be rebought." Leia looks down, slightly guilty about the rings. Han sighs, not protesting any further, he knew she was right.

"Well she has made her way to 18 slaves, only 22 left. What else do you have Princess?" Qi'ra quipped, taking a sip of her whiskey.

Leia goes silent, she had nothing left, anything of value had been destroyed along with Alderaan. Everything was gone.

"My gold dice. I know they ain't worth much, but it'll be something." Han offers. Leia looks at him in surprise.

"You don't have to."

"Apparently, I do, Cause Sweetheart I know you don't have anything else." Han answered. Leia stares at him, a slight smile appearing on her face. Qi'ra looks at the Princess, it was the first time she had seen the Princess unguarded.

"I'll give you 3 for the dice." Qi'ra responds, knowing they did not have any credit value, but a personal value.

"Kriff." Han curses, knowing he didn't have much more that was of value. "I've got about a kilogram of Spice. I'll give it to you for the rest of the slaves."

"You what?" Leia exclaims, surprised by this reveal. "Where did you get spice?"

"I got some from a trader on Ord Mantell, I picked it up just in case we needed to bribe our way out of a situation."

"I'll give you 10 for a kilogram." Qi'ra responds

"10? You know full well that the price of spice has increased since Kessel fell. A kilo is worth around 20,000 credits right now. I know you can trade it away for more than the slaves are worth."

"20,000 credits worth of Spice for nearly 40,000 credits worth of slaves. You don't drive a convincing bargain Han."

"How about you wave the remaining 20,000 credits as you left me for dead on this god forsaken planet nearly fourteen years ago."

"I didn't have a choice. I didn't necessarily want to leave you."

"And yet you did." Han sighs as he looks to his hand, prying the ring off his finger and throwing it onto the table with the rest of the jewelry.

"Han, you really don't have to." Leia protests, knowing this wasn't his negotiation to be caught up in.

"Can be re bought, right?" Han asks, "It's gold, worth at least 2,000 credits."

"I'll give you the last 22 for the spice and the ring." Qi'ra stands from the sofa, smoothing her dress as she stands. Han stands after his ex-lover does, grabbing Leia's hand in the process helping her up.

Qi'ra looks at the two, slightly taken aback at the sign of affection. She looks back to the rings on the table, the Corellian gold one belonging to the princess and the Alderaanian ring which belonged to Han. She smiles, knowing he had found someone.

"Turns out I was right, all of those years ago." Qi'ra chuckles. Leia looks between the two, unsure how Han would react.

"Whaddya mean?"

"You are the good guy." Qi'ra declares. "Although I must admit Princess, you did get the worse end of the deal. Compared to Alderaanian gold, Corellian gold is not worth much."

The older woman picks up the three rings, placing them back in the Princess' hand.

"I don't understand." Leia furrows her brow, worried that their negotiations had fallen through.

"Take your rings and the slaves. Think of it as a wedding present from me." Qi'ra closes Leia's hands around the rings.

"I can't guarantee your protection from the Empire or from the Alliance in the years to come." Leia warns.

"I understand. I'm not entirely sure we could have protected Alderaan from the Empire." Qi'ra admits. "I wish you luck with the Alliance."

Leia nods in gratitude, Han gets her attention by grabbing her hand and leading her away. Leia had no idea what the older woman was thinking as the princess of Alderaan walked away with her ex-lover. As the two decend in the lift Leia looks to her husband, his focus forward, clearly trying to supress the emotions that were trying to surface. Leia squeezes his hand, offering him silent support. Han finally looks to Leia, giving her a sheepish smile as Leia leans her head against his shoulder.

Leia was uncertain what would happen to Crimson Dawn or Qi'ra once the Alliance was finally established, however she would know it would be on her hands.


End file.
